Report of the Commission of Public Health to the Minister of Public Health / Department of Public Health, Victoria.

  • Victoria. Commission of Public Health.
Date:
[1924]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Report of the Commission of Public Health to the Minister of Public Health / Department of Public Health, Victoria. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    7/52 (page 7)
    The Commission, at the request of the Honorable the Acting Premier, Sir William McPherson, had a conference with the Chairman of the Melbourne and Metropolitan Board of Works on the 15th May, 1923, and after due consideration of his representations resolved :— (1) That it has no objection to the collection and removal of nightsoil being imposed on Councils provided that such duty is efficiently performed. (2) That it is urgent that the duty of disposal be at once undertaken by the Sewerage Authority owing to the unsuitability of many of the sites for disposal at present in use in several Metropolitan Municipal Districts. (3) That the Commission cannot recommend any further suspension of the proclamation of the Act unless an assurance be at once given by the Melbourne and Metropolitan Board of Works that it will at the earlist possible moment proceed to carry out the duty as to the disposal. (4) That the foregoing resolution be communicated to the Chairman of the Melbourne and Metropolitan Board of Works, also to the Minister of Public Health. On the 29th June, the Melbourne and Metropolitan Board of Works informed the Acting Premier that it was prepared to proceed at the earliest possible moment to carry out the duty of disposal. Since that date the Commission has been informed by the Board that it is awaiting the passage of an amending Act which is, in its opinion, essential to enable it to carry out the work of disposal. it is of the utmost importance that the work of proper disposal of nightsoil from the metropolitan area should be undertaken without delay. The Deports of the District Health Officers show that as a general rule closets in the country districts are insanitarily constructed and maintained and that disposal of nightsoil is badly done and not kept under proper supervision by the Council’s Inspector. While no town other than those mentioned in the last Report has adopted sewerage, yet many Councils are inquiring into the question, and there is reason to believe that definite action will soon be taken in the case of three or four of the larger towns in the country. Septic Tank Installation.—In the case of individual premises septic tanks are being installed in many places in the outskirts of the Metropolitan Area and in country districts/ Some of these are not satisfactory, inasmuch as no provision is made for purification of the effluent before discharge into a street channel or elsewhere. The Commission has adopted Regulations to secure sanitary construction of the plants and adequate purification of effluent. Chemical Closets.—Many types of chemical closets are being put on the market by commercial firms, but al] are not giving uniformly successful results. In the case of that type in which a caustic alkali is used the results are satisfactory, provided the directions are faithfully complied with. There is, however, some difficulty in the innocuous disposal of the contents of the receptacles. The term “ chemical closet ” popularly connotes an appliance which provides means for converting the faeces and paper into a sterile liquid. Many of the so-called chemical closets are- in effect merely the ordinary pan-closet, to which is added a comparatively small quantity of disinfectant. If a sufficient quantity of disinfectant is added either in one lot or intermittently and provision made for intimate admixture with the faecal matter, no nuisance will arise. In any case, however, proper disposal of the contents must be carried out. If the area of premises is insufficient or the soil unsuitable for local disposal the contents of the pan must be disposed of in a similar manner to that which obtains in regard to double-pan service, OFFENSIVE WATER-COURSES. Action has been taken by the Commission to prevent nuisance arising from the disposal of drainage from the offensive trade premises on the Maribyrnong River. As stated in the last Report, the offensive water-courses in the Metropolitan Area can only be maintained in a sanitary condition by new enabling legislation. The Commission notes with pleasure that the Metropolitan Streams and Drainage Bill has been passed by Parliament, and trusts that no time will be lost by the Melbourne and Metropolitan Board of Works, which has been intrusted with the administration of the Act, in taking the necessary action to permanently remedy the insanitary conditions of certain streams which have long been a reproach to the metropolis.